Multiple-spindle machine-tool



G. E. RANDLES.

MULTIPLE SPINDLE MACHINE TOOL.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 2, 191a.

4 SHEETSSHEEI 1.

Patented Nov. 15, 1921.

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G. E. HANDLES.

MULTIPLE SPINDLE MACHINE TOOL.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 2. 1918.

G. E. HANDLES.

MULTIPLE SPINDLE MACHINE TOOL.

APPLICATKON FiLED MAY 2, 1918.

1 ,396,78 1'. Patented Nov. 15 1921.

4 SHEETSSHEET 3.

,fiweizforf Mia? @Q/ @1370 G. E. ,RANDLES. MULTIPLE SPINDLE MACHl-NE TOOL.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 21 I918.

Patented Nov. 15, 1921. 4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

.1 yen-to 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE E. RANDLES OF CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE FOOTE-YBURT COMPANY, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

MULTIPLEQSPINDLE MACHINE-TOOL.

To allwhom itmay concern:

Be it known that I,- GEORGE E. Rxnnmas, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cleveland Heights, in the county of Guyahoga and State oLOhio, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Multiple-Spindle Machine-Tools, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The object of this invention is to provide a machine which will perform certain machine operations on a lar e number of SiIIlllar pieces of work in a g ven t1me;.1n other words, a machine having a large capacity output. I I

The machinein which the iIIVBIltlOIbIS embodied is organized with a plurality of tools, a like number of work holders, a mov- Specification of Letters Patent.

Application'flled May 2, 191a.

Patented Nov. 15, 1921.

Serial No. 232,009.

constitute the fixed frame-work of the machine.

'A head which serves as a carrier for.

said bearing comprising two flat rings and interposed anti-friction ballsor the like and there 1s also an annular thrust bearing near the upper end of the drum interposed between the sleeve 21 and a nut 14 carried able carrier for said tools and work holders,

and means to cause such movements of the tools, work holders and carrier as will cause the simultaneous operation of a plurallty of tools on a like number of work pieces, and to cause each tool to performnpon the work piece with which it is associated the particular machining operation the tool is adapted to perform while the carrieris going through it cycle of movement. The invention consists in the construction and combination of parts shown in the drawing, hereinafter described and defi-. nitely-pointed out in the appended cla ms.

In the drawings, Figure 1 1sv a fragmentary perspective front view of the mach1ne; Fig. 2 is a front elevation'partly in central vertical section'of said machine, when certain of the tools and work holders have been taken off; Fig. 3 is a sectional plan View taken in three different planes, to -wit, the

right half of the view being a section in the plane of line 3-3 of Fig. 2, the lower the column 10.- The sides of this carrier drum are extended above the top of the column to form an oil chamber 26 which is closed by a removable plate 27, said chamber being of larger diameter than the main body of the drum so as to overhang.

A horizontal main shaft 30 is mounted in the hollow base 12.and extends out of the the hollow base and has a pinion 36 on its half of the left side ofsaid view being a section in the plane of line BB on Fig. 2

and the upper part of the left side of thd figure being a section in the plane ofline A'-A on Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a plan view of the rotatable head;- Fig. 5 is a plan view partly sectioned of the base of the machlne.

Referring to the parts by reference char; acters, 10 represents a hollow cylindrical column which is rigidly fixed to and extends upwardly from the top member 13 of a built up hollowbase 12. This column and base ,nism to be now explained will continue .to'

upper end. This pinion is inmesh with a gear 37 that is fixed to a shaft 37" which carries a pinion 37 which in turn engages the internal ring gear 28 which is fixed in the lower end of the carrier drum. A clutch 38 ofany suitable kind should preferably be provided at some place so that motion willnot be transmitted from the driving shaft 30 to the carrier drum 20 unless that is desired. In the construction shown a clutch 38 is provided for connecting and dis; connecting the gear 39 and the shaft 30. When this'clutch is thrown in .the rotation of shaft 30 causes the carrier drum to rotate. When this clutch is thrown'out the drum will not rotate, but the other mechaoperate.

On the outside of the carrler drum or head a plurality of vertical rotatable spindles 40 are mounted. There may. be as many of means of a rack 43 which it carries,'and a inion 44 rotatably mounted in'the sleeve 42 or" engagement with said rack; said pinion v having a squared stem 45 which projects out of sleeve 42 to permit it to be turned. Nuts 46 which screw onto the spindle engage the ends of the sleeve42; and therefore, as the sleeve is moved u anddown, the spindle is likewise so move Each spindle projects into the oil chamber '26 in the upper end of sleeve 47,

the head, and has a driving connection with a pinion 48 located in said chamber. In the specific construction shown this pinion is fixed to the upper end of a sleeve 47 which is rotatably mounted in a bearing carried by the-bottom of the overhanging part of the oil chamber 26, ,said sleeve having a flange 49 on its lower end which flange and the pinion 48, which is fixed to the upper end of revent the sleeve from moving endwise in 1ts bearings. The spindle 40-goes through and has a tongue-and groove con nection with this sleeve 47.

Aproperly mounted vertical shaft 50extends from; the hollow base up centrally;

through the column 10 and it carries on its upper end a-pinion 54. At its lower end it carriesa'bevel ear 53 which meshes with a bevel gear 30 fixed to shaft 30. Trains of gears are interposed between the-pinion 54 and the several'pinions 48 on the spindlesfl As stated, twelve of these spindles are employed in the machine as shown, but this number is arbitrarily chosen. With that number, however, it has been found advisable to mount on vertical'axes within the chamber 26 three equally'spaced gears 55. Each of these gears meshes with two gears 56 which are also mounted to rotate on vertical axes, and are located within the chamber 26. Each of these gears meshes with twoof tates' all of the spindles .40 will be rotatedin the same direction and at the same speed r'ethe pinions 48 on adjacent spindles 40. It is evident, therefore that as the shaft 50 rogardless of whether the carrier drum or hea 1s turning or stationary.

Associated with each spindle is a. slide 60. Each slide is mounted in a vertical guideway 39 onthe outer surface of the carrier drum. Each slidehas mounted in suitable bearingsat its lower-end a wheel 61; and all of these wheels on the twelve spindles-rest upon andengage the top cam surface of a cam'rin which is concentric with and 'surroun s the lower end of the carrier drum, and is removably fixed to the base. This cam ring is made in at least two separable parts,

so that it may be easily removed and replaced by another, ring having a suitable camdsurface for moving the sli es 60 as desire At what may be called the front side of the machine this cam surface has .a. depressed portion 71. When each slide comes above,

that depressed portion the slide is permitted to drop down to such a position as will cause the work which the slide carries to be disengaged from the tool which the associated spindle carries, as will be hereinafter described.- To insure that this downward movement of the slide shall take place as stated, an arm 62 is fixed to each slide and it carries a roller 63 which is adapted to engage with the under face of a cam 72 secured to the cam rin 70.

In order t at this machine shall be adapted to rform the 'functions for which it is organized, it is necessary that a suitable toolbe secured to either each spindle or each associated slide, and that a work holder be provided on the other of these two parts.

In the construction shown I have chosen to form the lower endof the spindle to re-' ceive and hold a drill,-which necessitates thatthe slide 60 shall be provided with a work holder. 7 In the construction shown the work is supported upon a shelf 64 carried by the slide 60 and extended beneath the lower end of the spindle. A clamping plate 65 is arranged above this shelf and is fixed to four vertically movable rods 66 which rods are vertically movable through holes in the; shelf and through holes in sleeves 67 .fixed to the slide above the shelf. A spring 68surrounds the upper projecting end of each of these rods and is com ressed between the upper end of the associated sleeve and a nut 69' fixed to the rod. A cam lever. 69 is pivoted another piece inserted, which will be clamped in lace by the reverse operation of the lever.

s the carrier drum continues to rotate to carry any slide away from the front of the machine the roller 61 carried by this particular slide will by its enga ement with the cam 70 be rather quickly li ted So as to bring the work clamped on this slide into engagement with the tool carried by the associated spindle; Thereafter while the carrier drum is rotated this slide will, by the action of the cam thereon, be slowly raised so as to move the slide and work lengthwise of the spindle, whereby the tool carried by the spindle will perform that particular machining operation it is designed to erform upon the piece of work held by this slide, while the carrier drum is going through its cycle of movement, that is to say, is completing one revolution.

It will be understood, of course, that a similar slide may be associated With each spindle, and that each slide will or may be associated with substantially the same mech anism above described.

It will have been noted that certain of the operating mechanism is contained in the hollow base 12; in the drawing it will be seen that substantially all of this is on one side of a vertical hollow partition 14 which extends across the base and divides the same into two chambers 15, 16. This hollow partition has a large number of holes through both of its parallel vertical walls, and this hollow partition is filled with some filtering material, as for example, mineral wool. An oil pump -80 is provided for pumping oil out of the chamber 15 at theleft side of the partition referred to. The oil drawn by this pump is forced through a pipe 81 which extends up through the central hollow column 10 and discharges into the chamber 26, in the upper end of the carrier head, in which are the numerous intermeshing gear trains before referred to. The. gears in these gear trains therefore rotate in the oil contained in this chamber. There is a drain pipe 82 extending up into the chamber to the desired level into which this oil will run. This drain pipe is connected with the pipe 83 which extends down through the hollow column 10 and is discharged into the oil chamber 16 in the base at the right side of the partition referred to. This oil will, as

1 before stated, go through the filtering partition into the chamber 15 at the left side thereof.

A pi e 90 is passed centrally through the plate 2 into the chamber 26 at the upper end of the head, and this pipe has a swiveled connection with the supply pipe 91 above the head. This pipe extends down and discharges into an annular chamber 23 formed on the head, which chamber is provided with discharge ducts one located adjacent each of the spindles 40.1 From some suitable points water or some other fluid if desired,

flows through this pipe 90 into said annular chamber 23, and iscontinuously discharged therefrom onto the spindles and the work piecesto keep the tool and work cold. All

of this water so discharged falls into an annular trough 95 fixed to thetop member of the hollow base. A suitable drain pipe 96 is rovided for this trough.

aving described my invention I claim: 1. In a machine tool, the combination of a drum which is rotatable upon a vertical axis and has at its upper end a hollow overhanging oil chamber, a central hollow column around which said drum rotates, a vertical shaft which extends through said column and into said oil chamber, a plurality of vertical spindles rotatably mounted on said drum and projecting into said oil chamber,

.trains of gears in said oil chamber intermediate of said-shaft and the several spindles, and means to supply oil to said oil chamber.

2. In a machine tool, the combination of a central hollow column, a drum rotatably mounted upon said column, anti-friction bearings upon which said drum is supported, thrust bearings secured to said central column and engaging the upper part of said drum, said drum being provided at its upper end with an overhanging oil chamber in which the last mentioned thrust bearings lie, a plurality of spindles rotatably mounted upon said drum and projecting upward into said oil'chamber, and a central shaft which passes up through said hollow central column into the oil chamber, and trains of gears in the oil chamber intermediate of said central shaft and the several spindles.

3. In a machine tool, the combination of a tubular central column, a drum rotatably mounted thereon carrying a plurality of associated rotatable spindles and longitudinally movable work holding slides, said drum having at its upper end an overhanging hollow oil chamber, a hollow base upon which said central column is supported, an oil pump in said base, a pipe leading therefrom and discharging into the said over- GEORGE E. HANDLES.

Witnesses:

A. W. Foo'rn, S. E. GRoss. 

